XVe - XVIe siècle Un nouveau rapport au monde, un temps de mutation intellectuelle.

I - Early discovery in the Atlantic

● During the late XIVth and early XVth century, America was discovered under the rule of Portugal (Henry the Navigator, John II) and Spain (Isabella and Ferdinand, the Catholic kings) and split into 2 pieces with the treaty of Tordesillas, 1494, after Christopher Columbus arrived in the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola in the Caribbean. C. Columbus never realized he had discovered a new world as he was merely searching for a new way to Asia, on the contrary of Amerigo Vespucci.

○ A group of scholars in Saint-Dié-des-Vosges made a world map in 1507 that was the first known to give the name "America" in describing the New World. The name was given based on a letter by Amerigo Vespucci, describing his journey to Lorenzo de Medici.

○ Magellan, a portuguese at the service of Charles V, king of Spain, found a way to the Pacific through a strait(détroit) of 600 km : the first circumnavigation was accomplished by Elcano, 1522, during the expedition originally commissioned by Fernand de Magellan. However, Nunez de Balboa (a spanish conquistador) had already crossed the Isthmus of Darien, Panama, 1513.

● France, England and the Netherlands are entering a race to discover new lands, new ways to reach Asia, by the northwest passage as well as new areas for fishing (whales, cod…).

-John Cabot (Italian navigator and explorer in the service of England), at the service of Henry VII, arrived in Newfoundland (Terre Neuve) or New Scotland in 1498,. The Portuguese were there (The Corte-Real are a Portuguese family of noble origins in the 14th century with 3 brothers), as well as the French (port aux basques).

-Francis I hired Verrazzano (Italian businessman and explorer, in the service of Francis I during his three trips), arrived at the level of the Carolines in 1524 and named the bay of New York City “baie d'Angoulême” before finally reaching the Cape Breton and returned to Brest.

-Then, Jacques Cartier (French navigator and explorer) explored the mouth of St. Lawrence River until the site of the future Quebec and Montréal. The French were also trying to establish themselves in Brazil and in Florida (Fort Caroline).

II - The making of empires and the first settlements in America

● The English settlements:

The first settlements were lost colonies in which most people died or disappeared and were made by the English.

The first one, Roanoke, happened in 1587. Roanoke was situated on the shore, hence it was easily invaded.

The second one, Chesapeake, was made in 1607 and situated in a bay in the Coralines. For their settlement, the English decided to name the city Jamestown in honor of the king of England at that time: king James I. Jamestown still exists to this day.

The third one was Plymouth, in 1620, which was the final landing site of the first voyage of the Mayflower by the Puritans.

● The Dutch settlements:

New Netherland was the first Dutch colony in North America and was made in 1614. It extended from Albany, New York, in the north to Delaware in the south and encompassed parts of what are now the states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, and Delaware.

The second settlement was made in 1625. They founded New Amsterdam in Governor Island, in south Manhattan, which later on became New York as we know today. Peter Stuyvesant was an important person who helped found the city.

● The French settlements:

The first French settlement was unsuccessful due to the fact the Spanish killed everyone. Consequently, they went higher up north in the Terre Neuve(aka Newfoundland) and installed themselves near the St Lawrence river. La Nouvelle France is a set of French colonies situated in the north of North America.

As they colonized the New World, the French established forts and settlements that would become cities such as Quebec, Trois-Rivières and Montreal in Canada. Samuel de Champlain, for example, founded Quebec in 1608.

Later on, the French era in Mississippi's history began when Cavalier de La Salle claimed the area for France during his famous voyage down the Mississippi River in 1682. He named the region “Louisiana” in honor of French King Louis XIV, but failed to solidify the claim by establishing a settlement.

It is worth noting that the English and the French did not have the same idea for the settlements. The English mainly saw it as colonies and wanted to build an empire. On the contrary, the French saw it as outside